The Devil Wears Prada. Music by Elton John. Lyrics by Shaina Taub & Mark Sonnenbuck. Book by Kate Wetherhead. The Dominion Theatre, London until 18 October 2025, 4☆☆☆☆. Review: William Russell.

Photo Credit: Matt Crockett.

The Devil Wears Prada. Music by Elton John. Lyrics by Shaina Taub & Mark Sonnenbuck. Book byKate Wetherhead. The Dominion Theatre, 268 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T booking until October 2025,

4☆☆☆☆. Review: William Russell.

“As good as it gets.”

Musicals tend to get let down by the book, but this one, with a splendid score by Elton John which rocks along furiously, is not. Kate Wetherhead's tale is well told. There are also a series of striking sets by Tim Hatley, lavish costumes designed by Gregg Barns, albeit mostly hideous, and a cast drilled to perfection to add to the evening's delights. The chorus girls have great legs, the boys are handsome, and Vanessa Williams as Miranda, the demon boss at Runway magazine, is the icing on the cake. The other two leads, Georgie Buckland as Andy, the aspiring journalist who gets the job working for Miranda and is temporarily seduced by the world of Runway, and Amy Di Bartolomeo as Emily, the one she replaces before going back, sadder but wiser to her dull boyfriend rise to the demands of their roles without ever quite managing to stop the show, but then nobody did on opening night and the chances were certainly there. The show does what it sets out to do – entertains and provides something for your buck, not always the case by any means right down to the obligatory shower of sparkling stuff descending on the audience at the end. Director Jerry Mitchell, who also choreographed it, has done a terrific job and the jokes about all those accessories ladies who run fashion magazines adore work beautifully. There really is no reason why this one, first seen in Chicago but here with a brand new cast, should not run and run. But it is nothing like as good as movie which had real bite and good though she is Williams cannot better Meryl Streep, nor indeed can the other female leads erase memories of the film. However as an addition to the growing list of musicals based on a hit film and relying partly on the film for getting audiences in – there are no bottoms on seats stars in this for a start – The Devil Wears Prada, even if it says precious little other than that bitch godessess are not to be trusted, is about as good as it gets even if one wishes original musicals were the order of the day instead of remake ones.

Cast

Vanessa Williams – Miranda Priestley

Georgie Buckland – Andy

Amy Di Bartolomeo – Emily

Matt henry – Nigel

Rhys Whitfield – Nate

James Darch – Christian

Ensemble and Swings - Maddy Ambus, Gabby Antrobus, Selena Barron, Pamela Blair, Robertina Bonano, Josh Damer-Jennings, Lloyd Davies, Elisha Edwards, Akeem Ellis-Nyman, Elizabeth Fullarton,Jinny Gold,Natasha Heyward, Samuel How, Luke Jackson, Ethan Le phong, Ciro Lourencio, Liam Marcellino, Theo Papoui, Christopher Parkinson, Eleanor Peach, Jon Reynolds, Harriet Samuel-Gray, Olivia Saunders, Kayleigh Thadani,Ella Valentine, Tara Yasmin.

Creatives

Director & Choreographer – Jerry Mitchell

Scenic Designer – Tim Hatfield

Costume Designer – Gregg Barnes

Lighting Designer – Bruno Poet

Sound Designer – Gareth Owen

Musical Director – Katharine Wooley